Co-Designing Strengths-Based Single-Session Interventions for Young People with Chronic Conditions

Who is doing the research?

This project is part of a PhD being completed by Asha Parkinson, supervised by Dr Amy Finlay-Jones at Telethon Kids Institute and  Professor Barbara Mullan at Curtin University.

Asha’s PhD focuses on understanding and improving wellbeing for young people with chronic conditions. She is passionate about involving young people throughout all stages of the research process to ensure their voice is not only heard but shapes the direction of research from the beginning. Inspired by her lived experience of developing narcolepsy at the age of 18, Asha aims to advocate for better awareness and promotion of mental health in the context of physical health struggles.

Why is this research needed?

The experience of living with a chronic condition as a young person is unique. It requires balancing unpredictable symptoms and medical appointments with all of the typical challenges of youth, such as figuring out who you are, making friends, and gaining increased independence. This can be a really difficult task and can take a toll on the mental and emotion health of young people. Despite this, there aren’t many mental health supports that are relevant to the experiences of young people with chronic conditions. In consultations with the research team, young people explained the needs for flexible mental health supports that they could access when and where they wanted, and that were designed specifically for their experiences. To address this need, this project aims to develop  a series of short, online programs to promote wellbeing and minimise distress. The programs will be designed in collaboration with young people with chronic conditions from around Australia, and then will be pilot tested by around 100 young people to test whether they find them enjoyable and helpful.

Who is funding the research?

This research is funded by a Healthway WA Exploratory Grant awarded to Dr Amy Finlay Jones and colleagues.

How can I find out more?

To learn more about the project or join the waitlist to try out the programs, please email Asha at asha.parkinson @ telethonkids.org.au